Alexander Ollison (born July 1, 1988) better known by his artist name ”Allex Redd” is an American artist and entrepreneur. He is currently a traveling tattoo artist, painter, photographer and co-owner of tattoo shop “Truth-N-Art Tattoo” with long time friend better known brother, Marcus Tate. Born with a passion for art in all of its forms, he found an escape from his tumultuous upbringing and despotic environment through drawing, writing and composing music. As time passed he eventually found himself introduced to the world of tattooing in 2015 as his artwork caught the attention of others through his social media platforms. His artwork varies from realism to abstract as he stays engaged in learning multiple types of mediums pushing the limits of his potential with the dream of creating his very own “magnum opus” that will withstand the everlasting test of time.
”THE BALLAD OF A TATTOO”
”It turns out there’s a difference between a detail
and an image. If the dandelion on the sidewalk is
mere detail, the dandelion inked on a friend’s bicep
is an image because it moves when her body does,
even when a shirt covers the little thorny black sun
on a thin stalk. The same way that the bar code
on the back of another friend’s neck is just a detail,
until you hear that the row of numbers underneath
are the numbers his grandfather got on his arm
in a camp in Poland. Then it’s an image, something
activated in the reader’s senses beyond mere fact.
I know the difference doesn’t matter, except in poetry, where a coffin is just another coffin until someone at a funeral calls it a wooden overcoat, an image so heavy and warm at the same time that you forget it’s about death. At my uncle’s funeral, the coffin was so beautiful it was like the chandelier lightingthe room where treaties are signed. It made me think of how loved he was. It made me think of Shoshone funerals, where everything the dead person owned was put into a bonfire, even the horse. In that last sentence, is the horse a detail or an image? I don’t really know. In my mind, a horse is never anywhere near a fire, and a detail is as luminous as an image. The trumpet vine on the sagging fence. The clothes in the fire. And each tattoo that I touch on your back: the three-part illustration of how to use chopsticks, the four-leaf clover, the clock face stopped at 12:05. It’s not just a detail, it’s a STORY that I tell for another by describing what they feel by what they show in their tattoo and that’s what I try to bring to life.”
and an image. If the dandelion on the sidewalk is
mere detail, the dandelion inked on a friend’s bicep
is an image because it moves when her body does,
even when a shirt covers the little thorny black sun
on a thin stalk. The same way that the bar code
on the back of another friend’s neck is just a detail,
until you hear that the row of numbers underneath
are the numbers his grandfather got on his arm
in a camp in Poland. Then it’s an image, something
activated in the reader’s senses beyond mere fact.
I know the difference doesn’t matter, except in poetry, where a coffin is just another coffin until someone at a funeral calls it a wooden overcoat, an image so heavy and warm at the same time that you forget it’s about death. At my uncle’s funeral, the coffin was so beautiful it was like the chandelier lightingthe room where treaties are signed. It made me think of how loved he was. It made me think of Shoshone funerals, where everything the dead person owned was put into a bonfire, even the horse. In that last sentence, is the horse a detail or an image? I don’t really know. In my mind, a horse is never anywhere near a fire, and a detail is as luminous as an image. The trumpet vine on the sagging fence. The clothes in the fire. And each tattoo that I touch on your back: the three-part illustration of how to use chopsticks, the four-leaf clover, the clock face stopped at 12:05. It’s not just a detail, it’s a STORY that I tell for another by describing what they feel by what they show in their tattoo and that’s what I try to bring to life.”
Truth - N - Art Team
Truth - N - Art Tattoo has been serving the Upstate area of Spartanburg, South Carolina since 2017. Although recently established, Truth - N - Art has quickly become a household name in its community when searching for high quality one of a kind and professional art services.
Not only offering clients the highest quality of tattoo services, our artist can also serve your other artistic needs including but not limited to: henna tattoos, custom artwork, and logo designs.
Not only offering clients the highest quality of tattoo services, our artist can also serve your other artistic needs including but not limited to: henna tattoos, custom artwork, and logo designs.
